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Simply Succulents and Potted Succulents Dies

Hello Stamping Friends,

Hostess code: ZBP7XPBT

Our first rotation of club was last Tuesday, June 8, and we made what I call  ‘Two At A Time’  cards using the Simply Succulents Stamp set and the coordinating Potted Succulents Dies.  We used the largest die to create a stencil to sponge the succulents, check out these dies:

 

 

Then using our stamparatus we stamped our images with Stazon ink on water color paper.

I think they would rather see the cards first. 

Ahhh….. I suppose that would be a good idea.

CARD 1:

 

CARD 2:

INSIDE OF BOTH CARDS: 

It is ‘two at a time’ because we use the stencil itself on the first card and the sponged piece on the second card.  We die cut the Shimmer White for a cut out on the first card and a background piece on the second card.  I cut three aloe vera plants at the same time using one on the first card and two on the second card.  Two runners were cut with the dies with one used on each card.

If you would like to watch a video for making the cards it is on both Youtube and on my Facebook ‘Stampalosopher’ page as well as here:

Recipe For ‘Two At A Time’ Simply Succulents:

  • Card Bases:  5 1/2 X 8 1/2 scored at 4 1/4
    • Card 1 – Highland Heather
    • Card 2 – Just Jade
  • Shimmer White: 5 1/2 X 4 1/4; make 2 and die cut one with card size stencil die, tape to second piece and sponge; after sponging, use the paper trimmer to cut off 1/16 of an inch on each side.  Use the long sides to bring all those pretty colors to the inside.  See the picture of the inside above.
    • Card 1 – Use the die cut stencil
    • Card 2 – Use the sponged background
  • Shimmer White: 5 3/8 X 4; die cut the upper right hand side with the large succulent combo die, punch the corners with the Triple Punch (retired)
    • Card 1 – Use the full piece with the upper right corner die cut out
    • Card 2 – Use the die cut out from the full piece; sponge ever so lightly with Soft Succulent ink & Blending Brush
  • Shimmer White: 2 3/4 X 4 1/4  for Card 1 to go sandwiched between the card base and the stencil layer,  place 1/8″ from sides of the base in top right corner
  • Shimmer White:  2 3/4 X 4 1/4 to make the two inside cut outs using the large succulent die to cut out then stamping with the greeting in the stamp set ‘Encircled In Friendship’
    • Card 1 – Sponge Shimmer White piece ever so lightly with Highland Heather ink & Blending Brush
    • Card 2 – Sponge Shimmer White piece ever so lightly with Soft Succulent ink & Blending Brush
  • Watercolor Paper:  5 X 5; stamp all images at the same time
    • Card 1 – Larger combo of succulents stamp and a pot
    • Card 2 – One small succulent and a pot
  • Garden Green: Aloe Vera Plants;  Make 3, 5 1/2 X 2 1/2
  • Soft Succulent: Trailing Vines; Make 2, 5 1/2 X 1
  • Greeting: 1 X 3, stamped with Versa Mark and greeting from the Stamp Set ‘You’ve Been On My MInd’ then embossed with white embossing powder
    • Card 1 – Highland Heather
    • Card 2 – Just Jade
  • Bakers Twine: Crumb Cake
    • Card 1 – 11″ to wrap a pot and tie a bow
    • Card 2 – 6″ to tie a little bow
  • Embellishments:
    • Card 1 – Pastel Pearls in Gorgeous Grape
    • Card 2 – Pastel Pearls in Pink with a sequin beside it from the Expressions in Ink Ephemera Pack

  Embellishments are even two at a time – how quaint!

Is that a compliment, Sal, or are you being sarcastic?

  • Inks used:  Highland Heather, Soft Succulent, Flirty Flamingo, Mint Macaron, Blackberry Bliss, Cinnamon Cider, Pear Pizzaz, Garden Green, Gorgeous Grape
  • Stampin’ Blend:  Soft Smoky Slate used to create shadow on Card 2
  • Stamp Sets: Simply Succulents, Encircled In Friendship
  • Dies: Potted Succulent Dies

Thank you for stopping by today.  I hope you have learned a bit more about using our tools to create awesome cards.  If you are looking for a demonstrator, I would be honored to have you choose me and join our group of Carin’ Crafters!

For now, SAL, sailing a long to the next project

Karen

Hostess code: ZBP7XPBT

Click on little Sal in the computer to go to the online store.

Peek A Boo Card and Open Book Easel Card

Hello Stamping Friends,

Let’s look at this month’s club cards for those who have kits and need the instructions or those who want to recreate cards like them!

Peek A Boo Card

Here is the Youtube video:  (Did you know you can go to the settings and increase the speed?)

Thanks to Dawn Griffith for these dimensions.

  • Base:  Basic White, 4 1/4 X 8 1/2  scored at 4 1/4
  • Using the 2nd Largest Oval in the Stitched Shapes Framelits, fold the Basic White and cut ovals on the right hand side through both front and back.  My ovals are 1/2″ down from the top to the top edge of the framelit, 3/4″ up from the bottom to the bottom edge of framelit and 2 1/4″ from the right side of the Basic White to the left hand side of the framelit.
  • Front:  Hydrangea Hill Designer Series Paper (DSP), 4 1/4 X 5 1/2
  • Inside:  Hydrangea Hill DSP, 4 1/4 X 4 1/4 (minus a hair on the horizontal side to take into account the score line)
  • Using your Oval Framelit and a sticky note to hold the DSP in place on the Basic White, cut an oval in the front DSP and another oval on the inside DSP.  SAVE the cutout from the inside to glue on the mechanism.
  • Mechanism A:  Highland Heather, 4 1/4 X 5 3/4, scored on the long side at 5 1/2
  • Mechanism B:  Highland Heather, 4 1/4 X 3, scored on the short side at 2 3/4
  • Fold and burnish well the 1/2″ tabs on mechanisms A & B.  Attach A to the left side of the front DSP with the tab to the inside and attach B to the inside DSP on the right hand side with the tab hidden on the inside. Note: I used tear and tape and rolled the tiny bit of excess tape back onto itself to prevent any glue from catching on the mechanism.
  • Use a pencil to outline the oval on the Highland Heather and stamp your front greeting.  I used Blackberry Bliss to give a darker purple color and the friendship greeting in ‘Grace’s Garden’ stamp set.
  • Stamp the greeting on the oval cutout for the inside; I used the friend greeting from ‘Heartfelt’
  • After attaching the mechanisms, glue your inside DSP to the Basic White and then the front DSP to the Basic White.  Note: put the glue on the white not the front DSP because that piece is larger than the Basic White.  The small mechanism should go into the middle with the large mechanism at the back.
  • Use your pencil again to draw the oval for the inside on the mechanism that peeks in when you open the card.  Glue the oval cut out in place
  • Embellish with a little piece of ‘Gorgeous Grape Ribbon’ 2 X 1 1/2, two blackberry bliss punched butterflies, 3 pastel pearls and 1 butterfly gem (can you find it hiding on the left hand side?)

 

Open Book Easel Card

I was so delighted with how this card turned out and patting myself on the back but then had a humbling experience as I tried to do the Facebook Live and the sound echoed and the lighting didn’t work…… The silver lining to the mishaps was that I went to Youtube and learned how to edit a Youtube video so I could cut out the first eight minutes of echoing to make it a little easier for you to endure.  Unfortunately, I couldn’t fix the lighting so it still has a bit of a glare – so sorry for that less than professional presentation.  If you viewed the first video you see I had both lighting and sound corrected.  I made better notes for set up next time.

Thank you to Tina Zinck of the Serene Stamper for teaching me how to make an Open Book Easel Card.

  • Base:  Misty Moonlight, 5 1/2 X 8 1/2 scored at 2 1/8 and 4 1/4.  Fold in half and then Z fold the 2 1/8″ score line
  • Bottom Layer at top of easel and the layer at the base of easel (X2): Brass Foil in the ‘World of Good’ DSP, 5 1/8 X 1 7/8, watch the direction of the words as you glue the pieces to the base
  • Easel Stand:  Misty Moonlight, 5 1/8 X 7/8 and a DSP strip of compasses, 4 7/8 X 5/8; Note the Misty Moonlight has no border but the compasses DSP does have a border
  • Globe and Stand:  Misty Moonlight, 2 1/4 X 2 1/4, Die cut circle with the circle in the World Map Dies,                                 Use Brass Foil 2 1/4 X 3 1/4 to die cut the globe and the stand
  • Book Layers:
    • Cinnamon Cider: 5 1/8 X 3 7/8; score at 2  9/16 – one 16th mark past the half mark
    • Designer Series Paper:  (Beige with words) 4 7/8 X 3 5/8; score at 2 7/16, one 16th mark less than the half mark
    • Cinnamon Cider:  4 5/8 X 3 3/8; score at 2 5/16, one 16th mark past the quarter mark
    • Designer Series Paper: (Map) 4 3/8 X 3 1/8; score at 2 3/16, one 16th mark less than the quarter mark
  • Banner:  Cinnamon Cider, 1 X 3, Stamp with Memento Black and embellish with the Antiqued Corners

Curl each of your book layers.  Break the fibers with the bone folder then wrap around the Take A Pick tool.

Place Tear and Tape on the middle of each book layer, burnish well, attach to its layer.  Note: fold the layer in half to place so you can get it right on the score line of the next layer down.

Place glue dots on the edge of each layer and push the layer in toward the middle to maintain the curl before you push down on the glue dots. Hint:  Use less curl if you are mailing and a little more if you are hand delivering.

Place Tear and Tape on the easel top base at 1/16 down from top and over 1/16 on the right and the same on the left and all the way down on the top easel layer to mount the book to your easel base.  Mount your book recurling that last layer if needed.

Use glue dots to mount the globe to the bottom of the top page of the book checking placement so that the globe fits correctly on the base.

Stamp your greeting on the Cinnamon Cider strip, embellish with the antique corners and mount with glue dots.

I used white embossing and “Congratulations on this new beginning” on the inside.

That, my friends, is the second of our two club cards for April.  May is the catalog launch and then we start a new club rotation in June so contact me if you are interested and I will answer any questions you may have.  Text 303-815-0838.

Remember:  the World of Good Suite and all its individual products (page 24-26 of the Annual Catalog) are retiring and most have a huge discount right now so head to the online store to purchase them.  The Butterfly punch I used on the first card is also retiring (Butterfly Duet, pg. 165) and it is great for quick embellishments in the color of your choice.  Butterflies are always good for those times when we get a shadow or smudge on our artwork!

Have a wonderful day!

SAL,  Share A Love of stamping

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Easter Swap Cards

Hello Stamping Friends,

HAPPY EASTER!!  What a joyous time as we celebrate that Jesus is alive and He provided the sacrifice for all our sins!!

I will share my Easter swap card and the swap cards from the club.  Jo and Sharon sent their April swap cards early so I have extra cards for you to enjoy!

Where did you find a lily??

The lily is the inside petals of the Poinsettia Place DSP we had in the last mini catalog.

I used several retired and retiring products knowing the message was more important than product presentation.

The base is Purple Posy which will retire May 3 but the Ornate Layers Dies do not retire so that is good news.

Recipe:

Note:  DSP is an acronym for Designer Series Paper

  • Stamp Sets:  Easter Message, Teeny Tiny Wishes, His Grace.
  • Ink:  Gorgeous Grape, Memento Black.
  • Dies:  Ornate Layers, Stitched Rectangle Framelits, Detailed Bands (oval), Banner Blooms (stem).
  • Embossing Folder:  Tasteful Textile 3D or Subtle.
  • Base:  Purple Posy, 8 1/2 X 5 1/2, Scored at 2″, 3″, 5 1/2″ and 6 1/2″.  Note:  This is 3/8 inch more than a standard card but I found it was easy to fold our standard envelope just 3/8″ more to send the card.  This size allowed the card to have a nice background for the Ornate borders without the lacy edges hanging over.
  • Side Layers (X2):  Plain Oh So Ombre purple, 2 (minus a hair) X 5 1/2.  The score line creates the need for just a hair less than the 2″ side.  I used the darker at the bottom and cut 1/2″ off the dark bottom of the 6 X 6 DSP to start (you will use part of this piece later so don’t toss it).
  • Side Ornate Border (X2):  Very Vanilla, 2 X 5, Die cut with Ornate Border.
  • Inside Layer of Side Ornate Border (X2): Oh So Ombre circles on purple DSP, 1 X 4.
  • Top Ornate Border:  Very Vanilla, 5 3/4 X 2 3/4, Die Cut with Ornate Border.
  • Inside Layer of Top Ornate Border:  Plain Oh So Ombre Purple DSP,  3 5/8 X 1 1/2,  Cut this piece in half lengthwise (3/4″) for each side of cross and then place both halves in your paper cutter at the same time to cut 1″ off the lighter end so that you have two matching pieces that are 1 X 3/4 and two pieces that are 2 5/8 X 3/4.  Glue these 4 pieces to the edges of the wood tone paper leaving a 3/8″ cross.
  • Cross:  Natural Touch Specialty Paper, 1 7/8 X 4, glue this to the Ornate Border.
  • Base of cross:  Plain Oh So Ombre, 1/2 X 1 7/8, Use a piece of the dark end that you cut off, glue this piece to the Ornate Border leaving the same border as the top.
  • Once all your pieces are glued to the Very Vanilla Ornate Border, run the layer through an embossing folder.  I used Tasteful Textiles for this one but switched to the Subtle 3D embossing folder for the others I made to make the texture more — well — subtle!  Glue this directly to the middle.
  • Greetings:  Very Vanilla Strip, 1 3/4 X 8 1/2,  stamp the dove and John 3:16 from His Grace stamp set, He Is Not Here from Easter Message Stamp Set, and Happy Easter from Teeny Tiny wishes on the vanilla strip.  Fussy cut the dove, and use the Stitched Rectangle to cut the two side greetings and the oval from the Detailed Bands dies to cut He is Not Here.
  • Lily:  Poinsettia Place DSP, fussy cut the inside petals of one of the poinsettias or cut one of the small poinsettias in the paper and add an extra petal since lilies have six petals.
  • Greenery:  Garden Green, 1 1/2 X 2, Die cut two stems using the solid stem in Banner Blooms.  Attach to the back of the lily and then pop up the lily in the middle of the cross.
  • Dove:  Very Vanilla, fussy cut from the strip shown at greetings,  color the branch green and pop up above cross.
  • Embellshments:  Heart Charm, use Tombow on the flat side and let it sit to get good and tacky then attach.  I also added three rhinestones here and there.

The three greetings, the lily, and the dove are all popped up with dimensionals, all the other pieces are glued down.  Try not to get glue on the sides of the ornate borders so they look a bit lacy.  I put Tombow glue in the middle back of the ornate pieces and then use a scrap piece of cardstock to spread the Tombow glue just to the edge of the middles.

How did something that looks so simple turn into so many words?

I know, Sal, but I like to add all the little tips that can help someone else make the card; especially knowing that I am that someone and might want to make half a dozen more.

Let’s look at some swaps.

Jo Brooks used Mountain Air and His Grace stamp sets with the Majestic Mountains dies, the Cross of Hope Dies and the Word Wishes dies.  I love how she sponged the background!

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Sharon Fincham used the Wreath Builder dies for her Easter card swap, the dies make perfectly shaped eggs!

 

Lucille’s swap is the cutest little bunny!

Joy Meadow’s swap card looks quite springy with the Hydrangea Hill Designer Series Paper.  She said this fun fold is quite easy to make; we will have to try it someday.

Jo Brook’s March swap was an adorable St. Patrick’s Day card using the Word Wishes Dies and a fun gnome/leprechaun!

 

Lori Moore’s swap uses the Pretty Perennials stamp set in the JJ mini.   The set has the big ‘happy’ word and then little words you can use with it- ‘birthday’, ‘mail’, ‘for you’, ‘you make me’, ‘sending lots of’.

Suzi Walker used the Pretty Perennials set, as well, with the matching Perennial Petals Dies.  The DSP on the white is embossed with the Tasteful Textile 3D Embossing Folder.  I am longing for spring flowers like these:

Sharon Fincham did an amazing card with a fun pop up center.  She used the ‘Hey Girlfriend’ stamp set in the JJ mini:

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Great job everyone!  All the cards are beautiful and such an inspiration.

And now do we get to see the Mystery cards you all made yesterday? 

Well, Sal, I think I will start a new post so we don’t overwhelm our readers.

Thank you for spending some time with me and some of my club members today.  Would you like to join a club or create one for you and your friends.  Our club rotation starts again in May and we would love to have you join.  Contact me by text at 303-815-0838 or email [email protected].

The hostess code for today and April is: DJRYFBKM

The retired list has been posted and the best way to see what is still available is to go to my online store – click on little Sal in the computer – and click on specials.  The list is already outdated with things that have sold out so best to just head to the store!

Have a wonderful day and a blessed Easter!

SAL,  sharing a love of Jesus

Karen

Lions & Dragons – Oh My!

Hello Stamping Friends,

Let’s have some fun with Lions (dandelions) and Dragons (dragonflies)!

January’s hostess code is :  UEEZKD2D for use if your order is under $150.

Yesterday I was live on Facebook with January’s club cards.  Each club member had kits with all the supplies so this time my presentation was different with just the construction of the card without going from the beginning to the end and listing all the sizes of the card cuts, so this blog post will fill in the gaps!

Dragonfly Z Fold Club Card Introducing The Dandy Garden Suite

This suite is on Page 25 of the JJ catalog (Jan-June mini)!

 

Recipe:

Base:  Bumble Bee, 5 1/2 X 10 7/8,  Lay the base horizontally at the 7 1/4″ mark and cut down 1 1/8 inch, then score the rest of the way.

Secondly, mark the left hand side down from the top at 3 3/8″ and cut the base from 1 1/8″ to the 3 3/8″ mark.  (Note: the tip of the cut is at 1 1/8″).

 

Score the base at 3 5/8″ from the left.  You now have two score lines: one at 3 5/8′ and one at 7 1/4″.

Your base is done!

Let’s mount our little dragonflies and the bumblebees on little strips of window sheets.

Window sheet strips (X2):  3/8″ X 1 1/4″

Bumblebees:  Use the Dandy Wishes Dies little Bumblebee die to cut two bumblebees from the Dandy Garden DSP (Designer Series Paper).  Color the back of the bumblebees with Mossy Meadow.  Place glue dots on the top of one of the window sheets, one on the front and one glue dot on the back, and then adhere your bumblebees back to back.  The “Garden Wishes” stamp set has a bumblebee image to stamp if you would rather have a stamp set than a die set.

Dragonflies:  The Dandy Garden DSP has sheets that match up with the Dragonfly punch (which is bundled with the ‘Dragonfly Garden’ stamp set for a 10% discount) and you will punch out two matching small dragonflies and mount them on your window sheet strip with a glue dot on the window sheet front and on the back.

Back Layer of the Z fold:  Dandy Garden DSP, full rectangle – 3 3/8″ wide X 5 1/4″ tall.  The DSP is directional.

Middle Layer of the Z fold (which is on the back of the base):  Dandy Garden DSP,  Start with a piece of DSP, 3 3/8″ wide X 4 1/8″ tall, Mark down 1 1/8″ on the right hand side and cut from the tip of the left hand side to the mark on the right hand side.  Flip your base over and place your bumblebee where he will be on top of a dandelion at the back when you fold the card flat.  Use a glue dot to position the bumblebee and then adhere the DSP.

Front Layer of the Z fold:  Dandy Garden DSP, 3 3/8″ wide X 3″ tall to start.  Mark 1 1/8 ” down -this time on the left hand side and cut a diagonal from the tip of the 3″ to the 1 1/8″ mark. Before adhering, wrap your linen thread around the DSP and tie a bow.

Note:  On both the middle and the front layer, you can place your DSP where it will go, and make your marks for your diagonal cuts without measuring so that if your diagonal cut is not quite perfect your layer will be and will have a nice 1/8″ border.

Greeting Border:  Bumblebee, 3 1/4″ X 3 1/4″, cut with the Largest Square Stitched Shape Die (2 5/8″)

Greeting Top Layer:  Whisper White, 2 1/2″ X 2 1/2″, cut with the 2nd largest Square Stitched Shape Die (2 1/8″).  I stamped the greeting from Dragonfly Garden, “May Good Things Grow All Year Long”, in green,  and then did a stamp off of the dragonfly cluster across the greeting in Bumble Bee ink.

Embellishments:  One little ladybug mounted with a glue dot.  16″ of Mossy Meadow Braided Linen Trim.

Alternative Cut:  Diagonal Z fold with the diagonal from the back to the front.

The base of this card uses just 1/2 of a piece of cardstock so you can make two cards from one sheet.

Base:  Bumble Bee,  5 1/2″ X 10 7/8″ scored at 3 5/8″ and 7 1/4″ with a diagonal cut from left to right at the 5 1/2″ cut down to 1″ from the bottom on the right.

Note:  I have a 1/8″ border on the right, left and tops but did not have a border on the bottom.

Back Layer:  DSP, 3 3/8″ wide X  3 1/4 ” tall, cut diagonally left to right from the 3 1/4″ tip to 1 3/8″ down from the top.

Back Greeting:  Shimmer White, 3 3/8″ wide X 1 7/8″ tall, For this greeting I stamped the “Thank You For Your Kindness” from Dragonfly Garden in blue and then added a punched out dragonfly.

Middler Layer– goes on the back of the base:  DSP, striped in this case, 3 3/8″ wide X 3 7/8″ tall , diagonally cut from the right to the left from the tip to left marked at 1 1/2 “.  Tip:  place the top of your layer with a nice 1/8” border and trim the bottom since it is flush to the bottom.

Front Layer:  3 3/8″ wide X 2 3/8″ tall, cut diagonally from the left to the right marked at 1 3/8″ from the top.  Now wait — don’t adhere yet.

Dragonfly: Dandy Garden DSP,  punch two large dragonflies and mount them with glue dots on a strip of Window Sheet 3/8″ X 1 1/4″.  Use another glue dot to adhere the window sheet to the front of the base.

After the Dragonfly is adhered – adhere your front layer.

Embellishments:  Die cut a bumble bee from DSP and adhere to front; adhere a ladybug trinket with a glue dot to front; tie a little bow with 8″ of Mossy Meadow Braided Linen Trim and adhere it to the back.

Which do you like better?  A rectangle back or a diagonal back?  Leave a comment with your vote by January 25 for a chance to win the ladybug trinkets!

Sand and Sea Club Cards Introducing The Sand & Sea Suite

This suite is on page 41 of the JJ catalog.

 

I used the Whale Of A Time Designer Series Paper instead of the paper in the suite so I had a smaller background behind the shells.   The cards shown above have three different backgrounds from the Whale of a Time DSP:

Which do you like best?  #1) little fishes amongst the seaweed,  #2) seahorses,  #3) the coral reef

Leave a comment with your vote by January 25 for a chance to win The Opal Rounds embellishments!

Recipe:

Base:  Pretty Peacock, 5 1/2″ X 8 1/2″, Scored at 4 1/4″

Layer 1:  Whale of a Time DSP,  5 3/8″ X 4 1/8″

Layer 2:  Garden Green,  Start with 5 1/2″ X 4 1/4″ and cut with the largest Seaside Seashell Die to make a base.

Layer 3:  Granny Apple Green, Start with 5 1/2″ X 4 1/4″ and cut with the largest Seaside Seashell Die, then cut out all the little vines and glue them to the Garden Green base.  This gives you a nice contrast of greens.  Note:  you can cut into the seashells to give more area to adhere the vines since the seashells will be glued on top.

Layer 4:  Pearlescent Specialty Paper, Start with 5 1/2″ X 4 1/4″ and cut with the largest Seaside Seashell Die, then cut out all the seashells and glue them on the base over the greenery.

Greeting:  Shimmery White, Start with 1 X 2 1/2″, stamp the greeting, and then cut with the rectangle stitched die to make a perfectly sized rectangle.  Cut one end, stop halfway, reposition the die on the other end and cut that half.  I demonstrate this in the video.

Inside:  Shimmery White, 5 3/8″X 4 1/8″

Inside strip:  DSP cut from the same piece as the background, 5/8″ X 4 1/8″

Here are two examples of what I did on the inside:

So you can vote and really see the backgrounds here are up close images of the cards:

#1 – Little fishes

#2 – seahorses

#3 – Coral Reef

Remember it is Sale A Bration time with free products for each $50 or $100 order!!

January’s hostess code is :  UEEZKD2D for use if your order is under $150.

SAL,  Share A Love

Karen

Thank You or Sympathy Cards

Hello Stamping Friends,

January’s Hostess Code:  UEEZKD2D  Use this if your order is under $150.  At $150 you receive the hostess rewards.

.    Lions and Dragons – Oh my!  (Dandelions and Dragonflies-tee hee)  

That image is a sneak peak of tomorrow’s Facebook Live to make January’s club cards.  Join me at 9:30 AM at:

http://www.facebook.com/stampalosopher/videos

 

Can I come?  

Not quite yet, Sal, I have a few more classes to watch to be able to have you join us.  Soon!!

Thank You Cards

Are you wishing you had a quick and simple card layout for thank you notes?   I have one from a Mystery Card Challenge in our Blended Stampers Group on Facebook.   I used it for my club Zoom Mystery Card challenge #8.

I used ‘Feels Like Frost’ Designer Series Paper with coordinating bases, the Stitched Nested Labels and Metallic Mesh Ribbon.

‘Love & Thanks to a Dear Friend’ is from the Prized Peony stamp set with an inside greeting of ‘Your sweet friendship refreshes the soul’ also from Prized Peony.  The ‘Thank You’ is from ‘Beautiful World’ using a Stampin’ Marker to color just the thank you of the stamp.  Note:  Always use a marker not a blend when coloring the back of a stamp since the blends are alcohol and would stain the stamp.

Here is a close up:

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Now you can see the trick!  You score at halfway-5 1/2 , and again at 6 3/4.  Then you glue the 1 1/4″ section between the 5 1/2 and the 6 3/4 scores to the back half of the card.  Punch out little notches on this glued section and you have a unique placement for your ribbon.  I used the ‘Tailored Tag’ Punch.

Here are cards made by club members:

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This was the Christmas card I made for the Blended Stampers group.  We could use all our left over Christmas paper and make this  year’s cards!!

Dreamer!!

For sure!

Did you overlook the beautiful ‘Touched My Heart’ hostess set in the back of the Annual Catalog?  I used it to make Sympathy and Thank You cards in December casing Dawn Michels’ post on Pinterest.

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The base is Just Jade and the brick background comes from Tasteful Touches.

Base:  Just Jade, 8 1/2 X 5 1/2  Scored at 4 1/4

First Layer (X2):  Whisper White, 5 1/4 X 4

Top Border:  Just Jade, 3 1/4 X 3 1/4

Top:  Whisper White, 3 X 3

Bow:  8″ of  3/8″ Old Olive/Pretty Peacock reversible ribbon

Stamp the heart, the bricks and the greetings in Soft Suede and color the leaves with Just Jade.

The inside greeting is from the set ‘Kindness and Compassion’ which is retired.

What……Breaking your own rule of not using retired products?  

Once in a while, what you want to say overrides the self imposed rule!

This was a swap card using ‘His Love’ stamp set.   I made it months ago and it has been sitting on my desktop waiting to be posted.  It seems a good place to post with these cards since it would be good for encouraging someone.

Base:  Mint Macaron,  4 1/4 X 11, Scored at 5 1/2

Layer 1:  Ornate Garden DSP in Mint Macaron with Gold Foil,  4 X 5 1/4

Layer 2: Mint Macaron,  3 X 4 1/2

Layer 3:  Whisper White, 2 3/4 X 4 1/4, Embossed with Dainty Diamonds Embossing Folder

Ribbon:  Pool Party Sheer 3/8″ Ribbon,  4″ to wrap the layer and 8″ to make a bow.

Medallion:  Die Cut with Tasteful Labels a Large Circle in Gold Foil, 2 1/4 X 2 1/4 needed, a small circle with the Tasteful Labels Die, 1 1/2 X 1 1/2, in Whisper White, and punch a 1 3/8 circle from the matching DSP for the middle of the medallion.

Daisy:  Punch a large daisy in the DSP and another with the Gold card stock.  Use the small daisy punch with DSP for the top of the daisy and embellish with a Gold Gilded Gem.

For the inside:  Stamp off the Bible and then stamp it on the card stock.  (This is sometimes called ‘second generation’ stamping- you stamp off your freshly inked stamp on scrap paper before stamping on your card stock to create a lighter image.)  Stamp ‘Always’ in full strength ink on top of the Bible.

I hope these cards have given you a ‘pinch of creativity to spice up your crafting world’.

That tag line is how I came to be!

Indeed!  Thank you for your time in visiting today.  If you don’t have a demonstrator, I would be honored to help you out with your crafting needs.

SAL,  (So At Last – the new year begins)

Karen

January’s Hostess Code:  UEEZKD2D   Click on Sal in the computer to go to my onsite shop.

 

Grace’s Garden & Garden Gateway Dies & Bookmark

Hello Stamping Friends,  (Click on the title to go to the full blog if you are viewing this on your mobile device)

Today’s card is a bridge fold card using Grace’s Garden Stamp Set and Garden Gateway dies.

I used the Forever Greenery DSP (designer series paper) for the background.  I thought the ferns looked like evergreen trees and made a great background.  Remember that movie ‘Secret Garden’ where the children find the gate to a beautiful garden?

Here is the card with a large evergreen tree and then the card with a small evergreen tree (fern).

  

Do you feel like you are in a forest?

I put the greeting on the back.

And more flowers and a sun in the middle of the front.

I taught a little bit about using the Stamparatus to save time by mounting three of the stamps on the plate and then moving the plate down two counts on the hinge and stamping again.  The stamps I only wanted to stamp once, the bird, kitty cat and little flower were on the second plate and the gate and lupines on a third plate. I used three plates instead of 9 blocks when you count the greeting on the back!!

I stamped everything with Memento Tuxedo ink and then colored with Stampin’ Blends, except for the edging on the arch which I used a black Stampin’ Marker to color the edge so the arch looked very much like the gate and not so stark white.  I just held the marker so I could rub the edge of the arch on the side of the marker, similar to sponging.  Compare the arch on the first card without the edges colored to the arch on the second card with the coloring.  Huge difference – yes? Little details like that make us artists not just crafters.

Grace’s Garden Stamp Set & Garden Gateway Dies Bridge Card Recipe

Base: Mint Macaron 8 X 4 1/4

Score the base at: 1 1/4,  2 1/2,  5 1/2, 6 3/4

Bridge Strip: Mint Macaron 5 1/2 X  1/2

Back for greeting: Whisper White 4 x 2 7/8

Front Garden Back: DSP 4 X 2 7/8

Sides and front: DSP Make 4- 4 X 1 1/8

Thick Whisper White for arch:   3 X 4 1/4, die cut with Garden Gateway Dies

Sun: 1″ punch of Daffodil Delight scrap, sponge the edge

Vines at corners: Mint Macaron 2 1/2 X 2 , die cut with Garden Gateway Dies

Cardstock for Stamped Images: Whisper White 5 1/2 X 4 1/4 make 2

Stamp two of each of the 3 flower images, die cut with Garden Gateway Dies

Stamp two fence posts and two rose vines, die cut with Garden Gateway Dies

Stamp one gate, one cat, one bird, die cut with Garden Gateway Dies

Note:  5 X 7 1/4 magnet sheet to hold the dies in place in your plastic pouch

Stampin’ Blends Coloring

Arch, Gate and Posts:  Light Smoky Slate; also used the black Stampin’ Marker to color the edge of the arch.

Note:  I colored with the Stampin’ Marker on the edge because the Stampin’ Blends will bleed.

Grass: Dk Old Olive

Lupine: Dk Highland Heather and Dk Granny Apple Green

Smallest flowers:  Lt Mango Melody and Dk Granny Apple Green

Medium flowers:  Lt Daffodil Delight, Lt Old Olive and a touch of Dk Mango melody in the center

Large hollyhock flowers: Dk  Night of Navy and Lt Call Me Clover

Rose vine:  Dk Real Red and Dk Shaded Spruce

Bird:  Dk Daffodil Delight

Kitty Cat:  Dk and Lt Pumpkin Pie

Remember to add a Lt Smoky Slate shadow below the cat and flowers on your back greeting

We made two other projects together – the In Color Sampler sheet and the In Color bookmark.  It is tradition you know!

Bookmark Recipe

Base:  Cinnamon Cider  6 X 2 (minus a hair) Punch with the Scalloped Tag Topper Punch

Layer:  Just Jade  5 3/8 X 1 3/4  Corner round the top with the Detailed Trio Punch

Medallions:  Many Medallions Dies in 1 X 5 1/2 strip Magenta Madness, 1/2 X 5 1/2 Misty Moonlight and Bumblebee.

Ribbon:  4″ of Faux Suede and Bumblebee Gingham; 6″ of Linen Thread

Magnet Insert to store Medallion Dies 6 1/2 X 6 1/4


See you soon!

SAL,  Sharing A Lot

Karen

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sending Flowers Dies meets Fable Friends

Hello Stamping friends,

I used these dies for a valentine card which you can see by clicking HERE.

I designed a ‘Happy Spring’ card and a card with an Easter greeting:

   

 

The “Happy Spring”, “Easter Greetings”, mama goose with babies and the grass stamp are all in the Fable Friends stamp set in the annual catalog.

  

The lamb with the puff paint is a retired set called “Easter Lamb”.  It has just the one stamp in the set.

The cross is from the ‘Cross of Hope’ die set and cut from a piece of wood-tone paper in the Tropical Oasis Designer Series Paper(DSP).  Samples of this paper are also in the 6 X 6 paper stack you receive if you join Stampin’ Up! during Sale A Bration. I cut off the flower from the Sending Flowers die that was right in front of the cross and put that flower in the inside of the card.

The little butterfly on the Easter Card is from the “Enjoy Life” stamp set (annual catalog) and stamped in Calypso Coral.

The inside greeting, ‘today is a day for new beginnings’, is from our Sale A Bration ‘Power of Hope’ stamp set. With a $100 purchase you earn this set and the Stone 3D embossing folder.

   

    

I added the sunbeam from the retired ‘Kinda Eclectic’ for my personal Easter cards this year.

    

There is just something about seeing all those little lambs together that made me want to take another picture!!

We have less than a week, just until March 31, to earn Sale A Bration products or to purchase the coordinating products that include the Sending Flowers Die set.  I will show all the products further on in the post.

Recipe:

  • Base:  Thick Whisper White, 5 1/2 X 8 1/2 scored at 4 1/4
  • Top:    Thick Whisper White, 4 1/8 X 5 3/8
  • Characters:  Regular Whisper White, Depending on your choice of character, the goose can lay sideways above the goslings so a 4 X 2 piece should work or use up some of your scraps
  • Embellishments:  7″ of ribbon and seven little pearls colored to match the flower with Stampin’ Blends.

Are you sure you didn’t miss something?  Your cards hardly ever have that few pieces.  

By using our thick Whisper White we don’t necessarily need another layer in the inside and the ‘Sending Flowers’ die gives incredible dimension to the front so we don’t need more layers.  Probably a good thing I did this card with my club because the second card we did had 13 pieces!

Did you post that card already?

Not yet, Sal, but hopefully this week since it uses the Happy Birthday Sale A Bration set which has amazing flowers.  But I regress.  Let’s look at the steps for this card.

  1. Make cloud masks, a 3 1/4″ circle mask with your circle dies, and use sticky notes to mask the top of the base and the top of the inside as you sponge each section.  I fussy cut a cloud mask around the Happy Spring, Easter greetings, and inside greeting and used the Up and Away thinlets set (in the clearance rack) which has several cloud shapes to cut out.  If you don’t like the idea of fussy cutting your own, there are several dies in the catalog that could be modified to look like clouds.  For example ‘Lakeside’ dies have a die for a lily pad that could be a cloud.
  2. Cut out the cross if you are making the Easter card.
  3. Cut out your front flower circle with the ‘Sending Flowers’ Die.  You need this piece to position your clouds in the background.
  4. Lay your base open flat, mask the back side of the card, and mark 2 1/2″ on your grid sheet to guide you where to sponge the blue and green.  I used Balmy Blue and Granny Apple Green and our Sponge Brayers (#141714).  The brayers come in a pack with two handles and four sponges for $8.  They are so much easier to use than the rubber brayers and they give a nice consistent look.  Lay the cutout flowers over top of the front just to position your clouds and the cross then set that piece and the cross piece aside and sponge the base front.
  5. Remove the cloud masks and without reinking the brayer, lightly sponge over the sky to soften the white of the clouds.
  6.   
  7. Likewise, do the inside of the card:
    1. by first stamping the greeting and then masking the greeting with a cloud shape and adding other cloud shape masks as desired and masking off the other side of the inside of the card.
    2. sponge the blue sky and the green grass.  Remove the masks and do a light sponge over the clouds.
  8. Now you have the idea so let’s sponge the top flower cut out piece. Mask it with circle cutouts covering only the flowers.  I had to use two circle masks since my die was just a little bit small.  Stamp the greeting and mask it with a cloud mask and add other clouds as desired then sponge.
  9.  
  10. I purchased the gina K Masking Magic sheets from Amazon.
  11. Using Granny Apple Green and the grass stamp from Fable Friends, stamp little grass clumps on the inside, the front, and the area that will show behind the circle.
  12. Use Stampin Blends and color your flowers:
    1. Dk Pineapple Punch
    2. Lt Highland Heather
    3. Lt Calypso Coral
    4. Leave two tulips white
    5. Leaves of the tulips- Dk Granny Apple Green
    6. Leaves of the other flowers – Lt Granny Apple Green
  13. Using the same colors of Stampin’ Blends, color your Pearl Basic Jewels and add to the centers of the five petaled flowers.  Stampin’ Blends are alcohol so they won’t rub off the pearls.  Regular markers do rub off and we have used Sharpies in the past when we colored rhinestones or pearls- yay for matching colors in our own Stampin’ Blends!
  14. Stamp your characters in Memento Black so you can color them with Stampin’ Blends or apply puff paint.  Fussy cut them out and mount with glue dots.
  15. Place foam adhesive strips on the back of the front piece and a few dimensionals around the sides of the circle and attach.

but there is ribbon and a butterfly? 

Good catch, Sal!  The ribbon knot is tied around the front before the adhesive strips are added and the little butterfly is stamped on the front in Calypso Coral before the adhesive strips are added.  Whether you want these are not depends on the character you use.  The goose stands up so tall that the ribbon wouldn’t work, and the card might get a bit busy if you add a butterfly with all the little goslings.  Personal preference.

I stamped the ‘Happy Spring’ with Highland Heather but decided it was a little too light so I stamped Easter Greetings on a separate scrap of Whisper White in Gorgeous Grape and fussy cut it to look like a cloud.  I used glue dots to adhere it since I didn’t want it popped up too much and glue dots are just a slight pop up and a bit more than using snail or liquid glue.

I cut a few extra ‘Sending Flowers’ cut outs so the club members could cut off a flower or two or three to put on the insides of their cards and their cards looked awesome.   I just used the one flower I cut off the front so you could see the cross better to put on the inside.

 

 

SAL,  Send A Lot of flowers on a card

Karen

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Vibrant Vases Tri-fold card

Good morning, Stamping Friends,

It probably won’t be morning by the time you get this post in your mailbox but currently it is still morning in Karen’s World!

 

Don’t you mean Stampalosopher?  Karen’s World was your accounting firm.  

Yes, indeed, it is a Stampalosopher World!  Today I have one of two cards to show you that I created for a stint as a guest presenter in Grand Junction.  The first was inspired by Joy Meadows and the very lovely card she sent for my birthday.  Thank you, Joy!

Do you see how the front right hand flap is exactly the same size as the left side white layer with the same size black border?  So cool!   The white flaps inside and out are 3″ X 3 1/2″ with a black border of 3 1/8″  X 3 5/8″.  The paper is from the SAB (Sale A Bration) Botanical Butterfly DSP (Designer Series Paper).  One side had butterflies and the other had black and white designs like the dots Joy used here.  I hope you stocked up on this paper during SAB!  Her base is 9 7/8″ X 5 1/2″ scored at 4 1/8″ and 8 3/8″ .  This leaves a right hand flap of 1 1/2″.  The butterfly is from the Butterfly Gala stamp set which is still current and has a punch to match.  See page 46 of the Annual Catalog.

 

But Karen, you can’t use retired Designer Series Paper!

I know, Sal, so I chose to use the Vibrant Vases and the Pressed Petals DSP with an accent color of Blueberry Bushel, one of the 2018-2020 In Colors that I will definitely need to stock up on before it retires next June.


Don’t you love the Pressed Petals DSP with the Blueberry Bushel?  There is even a sheet of the DSP with plain burlap that I used for the right side little panel to coordinate with the background of the pressed petals.

 

And the Pressed Petals is part of the current “Buy 3 packs of DSP and Get One Free”!

That’s right, Sal, thanks for the input!

I used the Flourishing Phrases stamp set for the sentiments on the flap and the left side of the card and left the inside blank for a birthday, congratulations or just thinking of you sentiment.  I needed a little larger flap than what Joy used for the butterflies so the measurements won’t be the same.  The goal was to have the outside vases a bit plain with the inside vase truly “vibrant” to match the sentiments. The Vibrant Vases stamp set is a two-step stamp set with outline stamps for the vases and then a stamp-to-color for each vase and it even has a punch to match! Check out page 61 of the Annual Catalog. The yellowed images show what images are punchable. (Is that a word?)

 

I stamped the outside vases with the border stamps in Soft Suede and then stamped again with the stamp-to-color stamps after stamping off to lighten the image.  I used the “H” acrylic block and spaced out the three vases and stamped with the outline stamps on a 6 X 3 piece of Whisper White.  I then placed the (clean) stamp-to-color stamps on top of the images and took another “H” acrylic block and pressed it down on the stamps to attach them to the blocks in the perfect position.  The stamparatus would have worked better but it was in use for the other card.  

 

You could order a second one.  I could help, page 184, #146276.

Thanks Sal.  That might be a good idea for the next time. To make the inside vase truly “vibrant”, I stamped it in Blueberry Bushel, colored in the diamonds with Cajun Craze and Daffodil Delight regular markers and then took my Versa Mark ink and inked the entire image.  I applied “Clear Embossing Powder” and then heated it to make the vase look like glass.

Stamp the greenery and flowers directly on the Very Vanilla card stock pieces – the flap for the outside and the Pretty Label punched piece for the left hand side.  Adhere the vases directly to the paper since they are punched out and look 3D without dimensionals.  I adhered the two larger vases close enough together so that I could adhere the middle little vase slightly on top of the larger ones and all three would fit on the 2″ shelf that was cut from Early Espresso card stock to a final size of 2″ X 1/4″ with the “Be Mine” stitched framelits.  Hint:  Start with a larger piece of Early Espresso and cut the scallop edge with the framelit and then place it in the Stampin’ Trimmer to cut to the 1/4″ shelf size. I cut a piece longer than the desired 2″ so I could cut exactly 1/2 of a scallop at each edge of the shelf.

 

She told me she was a “recovering perfectionist”!   Maybe she needs more therapy.  SHHHH……

 

Did you say something, Sal?

The shelf is adhered  with the top of the shelf 1 1/4″ from the bottom of the Very Vanilla layer and 3/8″ over from the left and right sides. Stamp the greeting in Blueberry Bushel under the shelf.

It can be tricky to stamp the greenery at the right spot for the vases so stamp your vases and punch them out then trim off the bottom white edge of the vases.  Punches generally leave a little edge all the way around the image just like what we teach in fussing cutting.  You want the vases to sit directly on the shelf so trim off that bottom edge.

Temporarily place your vases where you want them on the shelf and use a pencil to lightly outline the top of each vase.  Now make three more light pencil marks where you want your stem to attach to the tulip.  The tulip is 3/8″.  Vary the heights of the three tulips.  Use a sticky note to mask the shelf and where the vases will be and stamp the stem and greenery in Old Olive.  Then stamp the tulips in Cajun Craze and stamp-to-color in Daffodil Delight.  I had a shadow on one of my leaves so I just hand drew another leaf to utilize the shadow.

 

Sheri always called that “Design Opportunity”!

That she did!  And that it is! We sometimes use tiny butterflies or hearts to cover our shadows and it adds beauty to the card.  I just ordered erasers from Amazon that are supposed to remove ink without damaging the paper.  I will let you know if they work.

A Stitched Labels Die is used for the little greeting that says “so he made you” and the fancy die in that same set is used for the DSP cutout on the left side.  The Pretty Label punch is used for the vase and flowers on the left side.  This is one of those times when you want to punch first and then stamp so you can align the flowers and vase on the punched piece.  Use the same procedure of placing the vase temporarily on the piece, lightly draw the top of the vase, mask with a sticky note and stamp the flowers with Memento Black ink, then adhere the vase, color the flowers in Daffodil Delight and the greenery in Garden Green.  Adhere rhinestones colored with Cajun Craze Stampin’ Blends.  Sponge the edge of the Pretty Label punched piece and the little rectangle greeting with Blueberry Bushel and pop up both pieces with dimensionals.

Summary:

Stamp sets:  Vibrant Vases, Flourishing Phrases

Inks:  Blueberry Bushel, Soft Suede, Old Olive, Cajun Craze, Daffodil Delight, Tuxedo Memento Black

Markers:  Blueberry Bushel, Garden Green, Daffodil Delight

Stampin’ Blends:  Cajun Craze to color rhinestones

Framelits/Dies:  Be Mine, Stitched Labels

Punches:  Vases Builder, Pretty Label

Embellishments:  Four rhinestones colored with Cajun Craze

Card Base:  Thick Very Vanilla  9 7/8″ X 5 1/2″  Scored at 4 1/8″ and 8 5/16″ ; Fold in the little right side first and then fold in the left side over the middle.

First Layer on left side and middle:  Blueberry Bushel (make 2)  3 7/8″ X 5 1/4″ ,  Cut out the middle of the inside one. I used a retired rectangular framelit that I use to save paper when I am layering. A stitched rectangle framelit would work as well.

Second Layer on left side and middle:  Pressed Petals DSP (make 2) 3 5/8″  X 5″ ; Cut out the center of the inside DSP layer with the Stitched Shapes Die- the fancy one.  Use the cut out for the left side behind the Pretty Label punched piece.

Third Layer on left side and the flap for the front:  Blueberry Bushel (make 2) 3 1/8″ X 4″.  The left side 3rd layer is adhered 1/2″ down from the edge of the DSP and 1/4″ over from the edge of the DSP.

Fourth Layer on left side and the front flap:  Very Vanilla (make 2) 2 7/8″ X 3 3/4″

Little Right side first layer:  Blueberry Bushel, 1 1/4″ X 5 1/4″.

Little Right side second layer:  DSP in plain burlap 1″ X 5″

The Blueberry Bushel Front Flap is adhered 1/2″ down from the burlap DSP on the little right side to exactly match the left side. This is done last!  I put two pieces of tear and tape at the far right of the flap and then matched up the flap to the card’s left side and pressed it in place.

Shelf:  Early Espresso, 4″  X  4″  Cut to 2″ X 1/4″ with the Be Mine Scalloped framelit and the Stampin’ Trimmer

Vases:  Very Vanilla,  Use the leftover from cutting the base or a 6″ X 3″

Punched Label:  Very Vanilla  2″ X 2 3/4″

Left side greeting and the left side vase:  1 1/2″  X  3 3/4″ , you need it large enough to be able to hold it as you punch the vase.  Stamp the greeting on the same piece and cut with the Little Stitched Labels Framelit.

 

I remember you looking at that little Die and saying it was too little to use for anything.

I did say that!  Amazing isn’t it?!  I am glad I have that set.  I used two of the Dies on this card.  I love the one I call the “fancy” Stitched Label Die!

Okay Sal, I am through with this post and it is your turn to guide folks to the store where they can shop to their hearts content!  Don’t forget  to check the Clearance Rack, friends, before you place your order, there are many Christmas sets available at great prices.  I have a post coming up from our first Christmas card Stamp-A-Stack called Clearance Rack meets Stamp-A-Stack.  Stay tuned!

SAL, Stamp A Lot, Smile A Little, Share A Love

Karen

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shrinky Dink Card with Technique Sheet

Hello Stamping Friends,

Club members have a fun day making a technique sheet and a special card.

At January’s club I taught the Shrinky Dink technique using the humming bird in the ‘Humming Along’ set.    The paper is our ‘Petal Promenade’ Designer Series Paper.  It has sheets of paper with realistic little images to cut out like I have done here.  The greeting is from ‘A Big Thank You’ .

The technique sheet is  6″ X 6″, perfect for putting in a photo album of that size for future reference.

I have some Valentines to post, since it is the day after the party and I won’t spoil the surprise, so I will sign off this post and begin another.

SAL,   (Shrink Anything Large)

Karen

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